Soccer and society: the effects of Brazil’s defeat

To what extent did Brazil’s World Cup performance and elimination affect the country’s image and self-esteem, domestically and abroad, not only with regard to soccer, but particularly in the political, economic, social and cultural spheres?

This issue will be addressed during the event A Debate in Two Halves: The Phantasmagoria of Defeat, Soccer as Metaphor, that USP’s Institute of Advanced Studies (IEA-USP) will hold on July 25, from 10 am to 4 pm, in the Ruy Leme Room, at the School of Economics, Administration and Accounting (FEA).

The debate aims to draw a parallel between soccer and society, discussing the sport’s role in the country’s national identity, within the context of a new geopolitics where Brazil is seen as a rising leader.

In the first-half, from 10 am to 12 pm, the panelists will be Ugo Giorgetti, filmmaker and columnist of the “Sports Edition” section of O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper; Daniela Alfonsi, anthropologist, director of the Museum of Soccer; Luiz Carlos Ribeiro, historian, professor of the History Department at Paraná Federal University; and Bernardo Sorj (via Web), sociologist and visiting professor at IEA-USP.

The second-half, from 2 to 4 pm, will feature Carlos Melo, political scientist, professor at the Institute of Education and Research (Insper) and member of IEA’s Research Group on the Quality of Democracy; Fernando Mires (via Web), political scientist, professor at the University of Oldenburg, Germany; Germán Labrador Méndez (via Web), professor of the Department of Spanish & Portuguese Languages ​​and Cultures at Princeton University, USA; and Lorenzo Mammì, art critic and professor of the Department of Philosophy at USP.

Renato Janine Ribeiro, philosopher, will act as mediator. The debate is part of the ongoing discussions taking place within the Laboratory of Contemporary Societies, which began in June 2013 in the heat of the street demonstrations that overtook Brazil’s major cities.

The event is open to the public and admission is free. To register, please email leila.costa@usp.br. The event will also be broadcast live on the Web. FEA-USP is located at Av. Professor Luciano Gualberto, 908, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo, SP (map).